H. B. 2364
(By Delegates Manchin, Longstreth and Caputo)
[Introduced February 13, 2009; referred to the
Committee on Health and Human Resources then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §16-29B-17 of the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to common standards for
hospitals' charity care programs; bad debt collection
programs; and requiring hospitals to provide free charity care
to uninsured citizens below one hundred percent of the poverty
level and lowered rates to those citizens between one hundred
and three hundred percent above poverty level.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §16-29B-17 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 29B. HEALTH CARE AUTHORITY.
§16-29B-17. Uniform system of financial reporting.
(a) The board shall develop and specify a uniform system of
reporting utilization, accounting and financial reporting,
including cost allocation methods by which hospitals shall record their revenues, income, expenses, capital outlays, assets,
liabilities and units of service. The development and
specification process aforementioned shall be conducted in a manner
determined by the board to be most efficient for that purpose
notwithstanding the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code. Each hospital shall adopt this uniform system for the
purpose of reporting utilization, costs and revenues to the board
effective for the fiscal year beginning on or after twelve months
from the effective date of this article.
(b) The board may provide for modification in the accounting
and reporting system in order to correctly reflect differences in
the scope or type of services and financial structures of the
various categories, sizes and types of hospitals and in a manner
consistent with the purposes of this article.
(c) The board may provide technical assistance to those
hospitals which request it and which evidence sufficient need for
assistance in the establishment of a data collection system to the
extent that funds are available to the board for this purpose.
(d) The board shall, after consultation with health care
providers, purchasers, classes of purchasers and third-party
payors, adopt a mandatory form for reporting to the board, at its
request, medical diagnosis, treatment and other services rendered
to each purchaser by health care providers subject to the
provisions of this article.
(e) Following a public hearing, the board shall establish a
program to minimize the administrative burden on hospitals by
eliminating unnecessary duplication of financial and operational
reports; and to the extent possible, notwithstanding any other law,
coordinate reviews, reports and inspections performed by federal,
state, local and private agencies.
(f) Starting July 1, 2009, and every July 1 thereafter,
hospitals shall report to the board their charity care policies,
how the hospital publicizes its charity care policy and its
collection policies for bad debt. After reviewing the charity care
and collection policies, the board shall convene a public hearing
to determine whether the board should adopt minimum standards for
hospital charity care policies, minimum standards for publication
and dissemination of these policies and minimum standards for bad
debt collection policies. The board may update these standards
from time to time. After January 1, 2010, hospitals shall adopt a
charity care policy that, at a minimum, provides free charity care
to uninsured citizens whose family income is below one hundred
percent of the federal poverty level and charges citizens with
family incomes one hundred to three hundred percent above federal
poverty level a rate not to exceed the allowable rate for Medicare
patients for the same service.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide standards for
hospitals' charity care programs and bad debt collection programs
and require hospitals to provide free charity care to uninsured citizens below poverty level and lowered rates to those citizens
between one hundred and three hundred percent above poverty level.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.